I am somewhat of a world citizen. I have lived in four continents, I have learned new languages and new cultures; I have seen and done things that most people would only dream of doing. I have ridden exotic animals, I have prayed in thousand-year-old churches and temples, I have had water (or, let's be honest, Coca-Cola) in 80 cities, I have gotten wet with rain in 15 countries, I have gone swimming in three different seas... You might say that I have seen and done so much, that I am difficult to amaze.
But you'd be wrong.
I am amazed by snow.
You need to understand why, though: as much as I have traveled, and as old as I am (I have been informed that my new hair cut makes me look my real age...), I still grew up and spent more than half of my life in Barranquilla, on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, where the average temperature is 35ºC and the daily weather report shows a bright, shiny, beautiful sun. We have rain, of course; but somehow the sun manages to shine through the dark, grey clouds. I remember, one time, ages ago -my gosh, I could not have been older than 10- it started raining really, really hard. And the raindrops, well, they looked funny. And they fell funny, and made a real loud noise. I went towards the window and saw "ice cubes" falling from the sky. It was an amazing phenomenon - so amazing, that I sometimes wonder if that is a real or made-up memory that I have.
I don't know.
But it is precisely because of that warmth in my life that snow baffles me. It is the only reason why I stand the cold. And it is very, VERY cold. But it's white. And oh-so-lovely! I know the shoes get all messed up, the bottom part of jeans and pants is always wet, it's difficult to walk and dangerous to drive. And the crazy Germans keep living like nothing is happening - school goes on, university goes on, work goes on. It should be a National Holiday every day snow falls! But I realize that, in Germany, that would be highly deterrent to the schedules, since snowfalls here are not only hard (and serious) but also last for months.
I promised my friends and family (those living in The New World, you know, the real Western World) that I would not write about the snow every winter. I promised I would not be another cute little latina fascinated by the white cotton-candy balls falling from the sky. I promised I would not have the same sort of blog every December.
I lied.
We had some sort of hail yesterday, but it was enough to make the grass in the gardens and the rooftops white. So I named it snow. For me, winter AND CHRISTMAS have now officially begun, because it is now white. And yes, I will go out and make snow angels as soon as there is enough snow to sink into. And yes, I will take plenty of pictures and send them to The Snow Flake Queen, and yes I will more than likely begin complaining in February, and yes, and I will be just another cute little latina fascinated by the white cotton-candy balls falling from the sky.
But you'd be wrong.
I am amazed by snow.
You need to understand why, though: as much as I have traveled, and as old as I am (I have been informed that my new hair cut makes me look my real age...), I still grew up and spent more than half of my life in Barranquilla, on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, where the average temperature is 35ºC and the daily weather report shows a bright, shiny, beautiful sun. We have rain, of course; but somehow the sun manages to shine through the dark, grey clouds. I remember, one time, ages ago -my gosh, I could not have been older than 10- it started raining really, really hard. And the raindrops, well, they looked funny. And they fell funny, and made a real loud noise. I went towards the window and saw "ice cubes" falling from the sky. It was an amazing phenomenon - so amazing, that I sometimes wonder if that is a real or made-up memory that I have.
I don't know.
But it is precisely because of that warmth in my life that snow baffles me. It is the only reason why I stand the cold. And it is very, VERY cold. But it's white. And oh-so-lovely! I know the shoes get all messed up, the bottom part of jeans and pants is always wet, it's difficult to walk and dangerous to drive. And the crazy Germans keep living like nothing is happening - school goes on, university goes on, work goes on. It should be a National Holiday every day snow falls! But I realize that, in Germany, that would be highly deterrent to the schedules, since snowfalls here are not only hard (and serious) but also last for months.
I promised my friends and family (those living in The New World, you know, the real Western World) that I would not write about the snow every winter. I promised I would not be another cute little latina fascinated by the white cotton-candy balls falling from the sky. I promised I would not have the same sort of blog every December.
I lied.
We had some sort of hail yesterday, but it was enough to make the grass in the gardens and the rooftops white. So I named it snow. For me, winter AND CHRISTMAS have now officially begun, because it is now white. And yes, I will go out and make snow angels as soon as there is enough snow to sink into. And yes, I will take plenty of pictures and send them to The Snow Flake Queen, and yes I will more than likely begin complaining in February, and yes, and I will be just another cute little latina fascinated by the white cotton-candy balls falling from the sky.
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| First "snow" for 2011 |
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